Show You Care
by card digi
Summary: Sesshomaru has been plagued by dreams of a young girl for as long as he can remember. What happens when he meets the real thing, and what's her role in the strange events that are happening in the city? Rated for violence, language and lemons.
1. Prologue: The Dream

**A/N: So this story is going to be something that's somewhat new to me. Unlike my other fic, it's not a series of one shots, but a suspense/thriller. I have the big picture figured out; it's the little details that are going to be the problem, so it will take me some time to update.**

**This dream is very important, just how important you'll have to wait and see. So I hope that you will enjoy this chapter and review. **

**I do not own Inuyasha or any of the characters within it.**

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><p>Sesshomaru was looking at a small girl's lifeless body. The body was lying on what appeared to be a road, but the only parts of it that were visible were the sections that were directly in front of and behind him.<p>

He didn't know where he was; all he knew was that it was very dark and very cold. Suddenly without warning, the darkness came up, surrounding him in a whirling mass of power and when it vanished the girl had too. Sesshomaru turned his head just in time to see the darkness rushing down the path, and without a moment's hesitation set out after it, saving the girl his main priority.

He continued down the path for what seemed like hours before he once again saw the girl. She was clutched in the hand of a giant . . . thing. Sesshomaru couldn't make out the creatures features. It seemed as if it itself was made out of the darkness.

It was standing in front of a huge reddish-black hole, the size of the moon that was hanging in the air. All around the creature were bodies. Thousands and thousands of bodies. Dead bodies. Was this the Lord of the Underworld, Sesshomaru wondered to himself as he continued to approach the beast.

Suddenly he came to a precipice. His prey was right in front of him, with his back turned no less. Killing him would be easy. As soon as Sesshomaru had this thought, the creature raised the hand that wasn't holding the girl. All of the bodies surrounding it began flying toward the reddish hole in the sky.

He didn't have much time before the girl would be sucked in too. Sesshomaru pulled out the Tenseiga, leaped at the beast and brought the sword over his head as he came down.

The beast was sliced clean in two. He caught the girl before she had the chance to hit the ground and waited for her to open her eyes. They stayed closed.

Without warning it all sunk in. She was dead for good and there was nothing he could do to save her. As this realization hit him, Sesshomaru dropped the Tenseiga and pulled the small form close, missing the warmth that usually radiated from her body.

The minute he dropped the sword, the bodies that had not been sucked into the hole began moving toward the Tenseiga, stretching their withered limbs out to it. They drew closer and closer . . . Sesshomaru was too lost in his grief to really give a damn about what they were doing. He just wanted to be left alone, but they continued to come closer and closer until . . .

Sesshomaru's eyes flew open. His breathing was slightly more rushed than normal and there was a thin layer of sweat on his forehead.

He'd been having this dream for as long as he could remember, but that didn't lessen the effect it had on him every time it occurred. He didn't even know what, if anything triggered it. It just seemed to come of its own volition, stealing into his consciousness and sleep at the same time. He didn't like having this dream; it left him feeling weak and powerless, which was unacceptable especially since those emotions were the result of something as insubstantial as a dream.

He wondered for what had to be the millionth time who the girl was. In all his one thousand years of living he had never not, once come across anyone who resembled her. Sure there were girls who looked like her, but they were missing something, something the girl had even in death. When he was younger, he'd thought the dream was a premonition, but time passed and he had never come to care for a woman, let alone a child the way he cared for the girl in his dream. Sesshomaru continued to ponder questions that he'd had for centuries in the darkness of his room. His musings were interrupted when he felt a soft pair of lips on his chest.

Kagura. He'd almost forgotten she was still there. They'd gone several rounds of vigorous mating before Kagura had succumbed to exhaustion. Apparently she had gotten some of her energy back. Her lips continued to move down his chest in a steady path.

Sesshomaru had been with Kagura for over a decade. He knew that she was waiting for him to make her his mate, and he honestly couldn't say why he had yet to do so. She suited him in every way.

Kagura reached her destination and with little play took him into her mouth. Sesshomaru felt his eyes close in reflex. She was very good at this. When he decided that he'd had enough of her teasing he reached down and pulled her up to him. Kagura immediately began to lightly nip at his pointed ears and Sesshomaru had to make a decision very quickly: did he really feel like going another round or two with Kagura? But the lingering powerlessness and despair were still there, giving him his answer.

Sesshomaru rolled over and pinned Kagura beneath him. He held her hands by her head while he buried his face in the crook of her neck, inhaling deeply as he entered her. He was rewarded with a soft moan. Sesshomaru concentrated on losing himself in her body, and sure enough the dream slowly began to fade from his mind.


	2. A Distraction

**I do not own Inuyasha or any of the characters within it. They belong to Rumiko Takahashi.**

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><p><em><strong>Six weeks later<strong>_

Sango and her partner, Nobou, were standing over the body of a young woman. She had been discovered in a hidden nook at a local park.

Her face was turned to the side and wisps of her long brown hair fell over her cheek. The woman's mouth was slightly open and her face held a mixed expression of fear and terror; dried tear tracks stained her cheeks. They could see bruises on her wrists from where she had been held down. But all this wasn't what had Sango horrified and Nobou trying valiantly not to lose his lunch.

The woman's midsection was distorted. A long, deep gash ran the width of her stomach, and excess skin was folded in on itself all along the cut. It looked as if something had been taken out of her stomach, and something had.

Forensics had been able to verify that the woman had been pregnant before she died. Yet there was no sign of the fetus anywhere near the crime scene. Once the perpetrator had gotten what he wanted, he had left the woman to die while - they _assumed _-taking the fetus with him.

Sango had been aware that there was a madman running around town, attacking women. By now the entire country knew it. But this was the first time she had seen the perp's work in the flesh. The photos didn't do the violent depravity justice.

Sango was a member of the supernatural unit in the 12th precinct in Tokyo, Japan, but right now she - along with every other police officer in Tokyo - was working on finding the lunatic who was committing these crimes. And so far, they hadn't had much luck. This was the fifteenth body to show up in six weeks.

When the first body had appeared, it had fallen under the responsibility of the sex crimes unit. Everyone had thought it was just a onetime thing, and the sex crimes officers had been especially vehement about catching the suspect. When the third body turned up, the police department had no choice but to notify the public and solicit their help. When the fourth body was discovered, Tokyo was forced to admit what every city wanted to avoid: that there was a serial killer on the loose, and not just any serial killer, but one that specifically targeted pregnant woman. The city and its citizen's had been in an uproar ever since. Each time a new body appeared, people became more hysterical. Even the news was hinting that the police were inept.

The problem was there was very little connecting the victims to each other, let alone to the perp. All of the women who had been attacked were different ages, different ethnicities, they lived in different parts of town, had different professions, etc. Other than being human, the only thing all the victims had in common was that each of them had been trying to get pregnant. While some of the women had seen the same fertility specialists, that still meant that the perp could work in one of the seven fertility clinics that the police had compiled into a list. This was a possibility but, it didn't explain how the perp had singled out the women who saw different specialists, especially since only three of the victims had cross-references to another specialist on the list.

The bodies the perp left behind didn't leave much evidence either, since the perp took everything with him, including the placenta. So forensics couldn't even use that to determine if the fetuses had anything in common. Although they had been able to glean some information from placenta cells that had been mixed with the victims' blood, what they found didn't make any sense.

Sango knelt down and studied the victim's face. She looks so young, Sango couldn't help thinking. She should have been at home safe with the father of the child, happily preparing her house for her little bundle of joy, not outside being butchered like some animal. Sango rose to her feet and turned away from the body. She knew that she would be seeing it in her dreams tonight. As she looked around the crime scene, she saw a very familiar pair coming toward her and Nobou.

Leading the way was a young man with black hair that was pulled into a small ponytail at the nape of his neck and a long golden staff in his hand. Sango knew that once he got closer she would be able to see his beautiful purple eyes. The second man was much older, shorter and rounder than the first, with a bald head and a benevolent expression. Miroku and his mentor Master Mushin.

While Sango and Nobou had only been working on this case for the last three weeks, Miroku and Mushin had been on it since the very beginning. They worked for a special agency that was based in Tokyo and specialized in vanquishing troublesome demons. However they had volunteered to help the sex crimes unit solve the mystery of the first woman.

Sango had always wondered why they had volunteered to help in the first place, and had discovered that Miroku thought all of these murders were the work of a demon. Of course this little tidbit had never been released to the public. If it had it would have disrupted the peaceful coexistence that humans and demons were currently enjoying.

When Sango first heard about Miroku's suspicions, she'd quickly dismissed it as prejudice; his parents had been killed by demons after all. But now she wasn't so sure. Whoever was behind these murders knew the human body very well, because they were able to cut the fetus out of the victims without harming it. They also had to be quick and efficient, because the police were never able to catch the perp, even after arriving at the scene five minutes after receiving a promising call. Someone in the medical profession would be capable of achieving the feat, but a demon could do it just as well. The fact that the perp deliberately cut the baby out while the woman was still alive hinted that he enjoyed causing pain.

Sango knew there were still plenty of demons out there who enjoyed inflicting pain on humans, but they were normally dealt with by the Demon's Peaceful Interaction Council, or DPIC. Sango knew that if demons suspected that one of their own was behind this, they would have inserted themselves into the investigation a long time ago.

Miroku reached the site of the body and knelt down to get a closer look at the damage. "How long ago was she found," he asked without any preamble.

"About thirty minutes ago," Sango answered wearily. She saw Miroku glance up at her, before turning his attention to the area around the body.

"So what else have you got," Miroku asked.

Nobou took out his notebook and began reading off his notes. "Name: Aya Hanma. Age: 29. She lives in those apartments over there," he pointed to a building that was just visible over the tops of the trees before continuing, "Neighbors say they heard her leave the apartment to walk her dog. When they heard screaming they called us. We hightailed it over here, but as usual we were too late. No one saw anyone covered in blood, carrying a newborn, or even anyone who looked suspicious, although people did see her dog running around and barking. Guess he was trying to get someone's attention. . . None of her things were taken. . . We're talking to local businesses in the hopes that they have security cameras, and that those cameras caught something, but were not hopeful," Nobuo finished with a defeated sigh.

"No," Miroku agreed. "This perp has never allowed himself to be caught on camera before. I see no reason why he would get sloppy now." He slowly rose to his feet. His normal carefree expression was gone, and in its place was a grim one.

Mushin, who had been quietly taking in the scene and Nobuo's words asked, "Does anyone know if she was married?"

"Yes, she was," Sango replied. "Her and her husband had been married for three years. They had been trying to get pregnant for around two years, before they finally got lucky . . ." Sango let her voice trail off. There was nothing lucky about this situation. She felt a surge of anger flow through her. She _would_ find this bastard, and once she did she would make him pay for what he'd done. "Her husband's been notified of what happened. He didn't take it so well," Sango said once she'd gotten herself focused again.

"I'd be surprised if he did," said Miroku. He and Mushin asked a few more questions before deciding that there was nothing more they could do until all the evidence had been gathered.

Sango began to walk towards her car and wasn't surprised when Miroku fell in beside her. She had a feeling she knew what was coming next, and sure enough as soon as she opened her car door Miroku said, "You know Sango, you've been working too hard. I can tell. Why don't you let me take you out for a night of relaxation?"

Sometime during his speech he'd gotten hold of her hand and was stroking it. "No thank you, Miroku. I'm perfectly capable of relaxing by myself," Sango said. When will he ever learn, she thought.

Miroku sighed as he watched Sango climb into her car. "I won't give up. I've decided that you are going to be mother of my children."

Sango rolled her eyes. "Of course I am Miroku," she said.

"I'm serious."

"I know. I'll see you later ok?" Sango said before shutting the door. As she turned the key in the ignition she was mentally shaking her head. Mother of his children indeed. The first time he said that she had gotten so mad that she'd slapped him, but now she just let it slide. It helped that Miroku thought every other women on the street was the future mother of his children.

As Sango pulled away from the crime scene, she thought to herself, maybe I'll say yes to him one of these days. She had a feeling he would prove to be a very nice distraction.

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><p><strong>AN: I know. You're probably wondering if this is an actual Rin/ Sess fic. It is. I'm just setting up the backdrop. I was going to post longer chapters, but I personally don't like reading fics with long chapters. Besides if the chapters are shorter I'll probably update sooner.**

**Rin should make her appearance two chapters from now. So I ask you to please be patient with me. Please review and let me know what you think so far. Thanks.**


	3. Family Dinner

**I do not own Inuyasha or any of the characters in it. **

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><p>Sesshomaru found himself in a showdown of sorts between both sides of his family.<p>

He was at a family dinner and it was Izayoi's idea. Ever since she had become his father's mate, Sesshomaru had been forced to attend these ridiculous dinners. Sesshomaru would have thought that after almost five hundred years of the same thing, Izayoi would have gotten tired of these farces, but she still held them once a month.

On one side of the table sat Sesshomaru's mother, Satomi, her mate, Fukae, and their children, Fumiko and Yuuta both of whom were full-blooded demons. On the other side of the table sat Takahiro, Sesshomaru's father, Izayoi, and their three sons, Inuyasha, Kenji and Satoru. Sesshomaru hated it when his mother decided to join him on these occasions, because it always tended to end up with him having to choose his every word and action carefully.

For example, tonight Sesshomaru was sitting on the same side of the table as his mother's family. He hadn't missed the disappointed look in his father's eyes when he had taken his seat. Sesshomaru brushed it off. You'd think that he had just disowned his father, the way Takahiro was sighing and shooting him pointed looks.

It was a well-known fact in his family that Sesshomaru got on better with Fumiko and Yuuta, than with Inuyasha, Kenji and Satoru. You'd think that everyone would have accepted the fact and moved on with their lives but no . . . While Sesshomaru knew that Inuyasha and the other's didn't care if Sesshomaru liked them or not, Izayoi wanted them all to be one big, huge, loving family. As if that could ever happen. She was so human, and Sesshomaru loved how she always seemed to forget that it was her fault that their families would never get along as well as they could. Sesshomaru was pulled from his ponderings just in time to hear his mother deliver one of her specially crafted gems to his father.

Tonight Inuyasha's woman had joined them for dinner, something Sesshomaru's mother had been quick to notice, and thus had chosen a seat as far away from her and Izayoi as possible while still sitting at the table. This worked out perfectly in Satomi's eyes because the human wenches were sitting right next to each other at one end of the table, while Takahiro was sitting at the other end. In other words, he was sitting far enough away from his mate for Satomi to get a rise out of him, something she had been working at diligently since she had arrived. Unfortunately, Izayoi had always been close enough to calm Takahiro down before he exploded.

"You know Takahiro, you surprise me. I expected you to look like and old man by now, but you look really good. You must tell me your secret so that I can look as good as you do once I have one foot in the grave," Satomi said. She was looking mildly shocked, as if she had just heard something that she couldn't believe.

Takahiro resisted the urge to growl. He would not react. He knew that Satomi was deliberately baiting him. One foot in the grave indeed. He was in his prime and she knew it. Why was Izayoi sitting so far away from him, Takahiro wondered. Satomi was on a roll. If she kept this up the evening would be sure to end in disaster, which was probably exactly what Satomi wanted. He would have to be the bigger man and ignore the insults that his ex-mate was hurling at him. But even so, Takahiro knew that it was useless, Satomi always knew where to prod to get a reaction out of him.

"I wonder who'll be here to take care of your mate once you're gone, Hiro," Satomi continued. She paused to bring a piece of meat to her lips. "You really should consider seeing to her welfare, since you won't be here much longer. I'm surprised that you've made it this far," Satomi finished.

"Yes, well you know what they say – ladies first," Takahiro said, unable to take her abuse much longer.

Satomi stopped what she was doing and turned to look straight at Takahiro with a highly amused look on her face. "Let me get this straight," she said. "You're waiting for _me_ to die before you do? You think that _I'm_ going to die before _you_," Satomi asked before busting into great gales of laughter. Takahiro wanted nothing more than to rip her face off, but since he knew that would result in an all-out war between his family and Satomi's he settled for letting out a ferocious growl instead.

Sesshomaru looked at his mother and father and sighed, they were going at each other's throats as usual. Some things never change, he thought to himself

Sesshomaru looked down at his plate and lost himself in his thoughts once more. There was a time when Sesshomaru wouldn't have gone to a family dinner unless someone dragged him there kicking and screaming, which had happened more than once. His father couldn't say no to Izayoi if his life depended on it. Now Sesshomaru went to them for several reasons: first, he had no real desire to butt heads with his father over something as trivial as family dinner. If he was going to fight his father, it would be over something important, like . . . anything but a family dinner. Second, he had nothing more compelling to do in his spare time. And third, this was closest he came nowadays to actual battle.

Sesshomaru knew that if his mother and father weren't sitting in a roomful of people who were weaker than they were, they would have already broken out into a fight. Of course it wouldn't have lasted for very long - Fukae wasn't his mother's mate for no reason - but it would have been a welcome relief to the boredom that had been plaguing Sesshomaru lately.

Sesshomaru could remember a time when fighting had been as natural as breathing. In those days he had wandered all over Japan, looking for the strongest opponents. He had been preparing to fight his father. Sesshomaru had gotten into plenty of fights with his father and had lost every single one of them. No, he was preparing to fight Takahiro and win. Decades, centuries of his life had been dedicated to that single purpose, and in the end his father had stepped down for love. _Love,_ Sesshomaru thought with disgust. It was a weak emotion, a human emotion. It had taken decades before Sesshomaru believed that his father had actually fallen in love and with a human no less.

Izayoi had made Takahiro swear that he wouldn't fight anymore. She actually thought that his father was as weak as her human vassals and wouldn't make it back to her. To this day, Sesshomaru knew that Takahiro had kept his promise to her: he had never fought in anymore battles. It took Sesshomaru only a few years to realize that his father was serious about not fighting. He had been incredulous. Who did that human wench think she was to order his father to just step down from ruling the Western Lands, which was what she was asking no matter how you looked at it?

Sesshomaru had been summoned to his father's study, where Takahiro had told him that he had something to give to him. When Sesshomaru saw his father pick up a sword, his heart had beat a little faster. Was his father giving him the Tetsusaiga, he had wondered. Sesshomaru had wanted the sword ever since the first time he'd seen his father use it in battle, but of course it was too good to be true. His father had bequeathed him with the Tenseiga, a useless sword for all intents and purposes. It wasn't even capable of cutting anything and furthermore, Sesshomaru had never seen his father use this sword. The only time he'd seen the Tenseiga inflict harm on anything was in his dream of the young girl.

Something in Sesshomaru had died that day. What was the point in working to become the strongest if the ultimate opponent had sworn off fighting? And so Sesshomaru had gained Lordship over the Western Lands, and proceeded to make them greater, more prosperous, more . . . everything than they had ever been under his father's rule. If he couldn't beat him at fighting, then he would just beat him at everything that Takahiro had ever done.

Time passed and things changed: first the government had made it illegal to carry a sword in public. Then Japan opened its borders to the outside world and the exorcists had come.

These exorcists were usually strong, and many demons, including Sesshomaru and his family were forced to hide their heritage just to survive. Never had he felt the need to kill, to defend, to _survive_ as strongly as during that time. Sesshomaru and his family had been reduced to wearing concealment charms and mingling with humans. He supposed that his father's association with Izayoi helped a lot during that time. Izayoi had found safe havens for Sesshomaru and his family until the exorcists were positive that they had succeeded in wiping out every demon in Japan.

As the 20th century drew near, Sesshomaru and his family came out of hiding, to find a country that they no longer recognized. But they were survivors and they adapted to this strange new world that they now found themselves living in. Sesshomaru and his father started one of the first transportation companies in Japan, eventually squeezing all foreign influence out of the domestic market. Taisho Inc. became solely responsible for building every train system in Japan. After the dropping of the atomic bomb, which had been a truly harrowing experience for everyone involved, many things changed.

On a national level, the surviving demons had decided that they'd had enough of Japan's war-mongering. If their lives were going to be put at risk, then they would have a say in the running of the country as well. Thus demons all over Japan began to take off their concealment charms and reclaim their previous positions of power. Of course, it was nowhere as easy as it sounded. The government, terrified that there were still demons in Japan, called the exorcists back in and a full scale war erupted between demons and exorcists. However this time the demons were prepared, and within a year the exorcists had surrendered. The government was forced to agree to the demon's terms, and the DPIC was formed.

On a smaller level, after each world war Taisho Inc. had expanded its influence, so that now it was responsible for half of the bus routes, all light rails and all the trains systems in Japan. Their power in politics was undisputed, they were one of the richest families in Japan, and it was a well-known fact to everyone that they were a perfect example of how demons and humans could live together peacefully.

Once Taisho Inc. had become the leading provider for transportation in Japan, they began focusing on updating other country's transportation systems. Currently, Sesshomaru was engaged in business talk with some American companies about updating their train system. Much to his chagrin, that's all he ever did anymore – talk. Sesshomaru was tired of talking, he wanted to kill something and not face going to those special jails they had for demons. He was a warrior, not a family man. Unbeknownst to Sesshomaru, his demonic aura flared dangerously.

He was unaware of the sudden silence that fell on the room. It was only when Sesshomaru felt Fukae's hand on his shoulder that he realized he had been sitting and staring at his food for the last fifteen minutes without eating any of it.

"What is it," Fukae asked. Sesshomaru looked up to see both his mother and father out of their chairs and facing the windows. Both of them had assumed battle stances as they sought out the source for the sudden flare of his aura. Even Fukae was tense, his eyes sweeping around the room, pausing every time he came to a window or a door. All of Sesshomaru's siblings were just looking at him, with the exception of Inuyasha who was also standing up and looking around.

"It's probably nothing. Maybe Sesshomaru's just in an extra pissy mood today," Inuyasha said as he finally sat down. Satomi, Fukae and Takahiro however were still on edge.

Sesshomaru sent an extra deadly glare at Inuyasha who was studiously avoiding eye contact. As Sesshomaru looked back at his plate, he realized that he was no longer hungry. He got up and waved a hand at his parents and Fukae to let them know that it was nothing. Then Sesshomaru left the room.

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><p>Later on that night, Sesshomaru was standing on his mother's balcony and staring up at the moon. It was a particularly windy night out, but looking at the moon had always calmed Sesshomaru and reminded him of the time when he used to wander up and down the country looking for worthy adversaries.<p>

After every family dinner that Izayoi gave, Satomi invited her children to spend the night at her house. They all knew that this was Satomi's way of making sure that she wasn't outdone by a human. Sesshomaru always thought that it was convenient how Satomi always forgot to invite Takahiro's family over as well.

Sesshomaru heard the patio door open and feet lightly making their way over to him. He took in the scent of cold northern forests. Fukae.

"The moon looks beautiful tonight," Fukae said once he was standing next to Sesshomaru. When Sesshomaru said nothing he continued, "Your mother and I are worried about you."

Sesshomaru sighed and resisted the urge to roll his eyes. This was nothing new to him. Fukae wasn't one to worry and fuss over him; he was probably just concerned about tonight's incident. His mother on the other hand . . . she was worried about his whole life and whether or not he was happy. Before Sesshomaru could respond to Fukae's statement, a huge gust of wind swept over them bringing with it a change. Just what type of change it was Sesshomaru had yet to determine, but he was positive that something big was getting ready to happen.

"Do you smell that? The scent of the wind has changed. It's been different for quite some time now," Sesshomaru said.

"Yes. Your mother and I were just talking about it. Do you know anything?" Fukae asked.

Sesshomaru looked at his step-father from the corner of his eye. There were very few men, demon or otherwise, who Sesshomaru respected. Fukae was one of the few men who fell into that coveted category. He knew that like himself, Fukae would have sent out people to look for anything suspicious once he'd caught the change in the air. "No. My people haven't turned up anything," Sesshomaru replied. "How about you," he asked

Fukae sighed. "No. Other than that serial killer on the loose, my people haven't picked up on anything strange either. I guess we'll just have to wait and see what happens."

Sesshomaru turned his attention back towards the crescent moon. "I hate waiting," he said.

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><p><strong>AN: When the idea for this story struck, it came with Sesshomaru having siblings on both his mother's and his father's side. I can tell you right now that Fumiko and Yuuta are going to have more of a presence in the story, than Kenji and Satoru. We'll also learn more about Fukae in later chapters.**

**Rin will make her appearance in the next chapter, I promise. I'm just setting up some background information before getting to the good stuff, so please bear with me. Let me know what you think so far, and thanks for reading.**


	4. Fear

**A/N: I do not own Inuyasha.**

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><p>Rin Fujihara looked around her for what felt like the thousandth time since she left work almost twenty minutes ago. She felt like she was being watched but there was nothing and no one around. Despite that fact Rin couldn't bring herself to calm down. Her heart was pounding and her breath was coming in fast, loud pants; she was close to hyperventilating and couldn't stop seeing make-believe shadows standing under the bright street lamps.<p>

By the time Rin reached the street that her apartment building was on, she was practically running. When she got to the door she reached into her coat pocket for the card that would let her in the building. Once inside she closed the door and power walked to the elevators. As the elevator arrived Rin put on a calm face in case anyone was in it. It was empty. _Thank God_, she thought_._

She stepped into the elevator, pushed the button to her floor and leaned against the walls of the small compartment. Her eyes closed of their own volition and Rin wondered when the fear would go away. After all, it had been a little over eight months since she had left Shun, yet she still expected him to jump out of the shadows and attack her.

Rin got off the elevator and walked to the apartment she shared with Sango Masuda. As soon as she had the door open Kilala, Sango's demon cat, sniffed her leg and jumped onto her shoulder. Rin tiredly reached a hand up to scratch the feline behind the ears. It never ceased to amaze how her commute could exhaust her so. If she wasn't always so scared whenever she stepped out of a building it'd be a different story.

Rin took in the dark apartment and concluded that Sango must still be out. She went through the apartment turning the lights on as she went. When she reached the kitchen she refilled Kilala's nearly empty water bowl and pressed the play button on the answering machine.

The first message was one of those automated ones that bill collectors used. Rin tuned out.

The second message was from Kohaku, Sango's younger brother. "Hey sis. Hey Rin. So I'm still waiting for that celebratory party for me getting on the force. Let me know when you're free to do something. I hope it's soon. I feel like I haven't seen you in ages. Oh and Dad wants you to call him. Bye." Rin smiled. Kohaku had graduated from the training program offered by the Tokyo Police Department almost two months ago. Sango had promised him that she would put together something more elaborate than drinks at a bar but had yet to do so. Besides, both siblings were so busy with work that it would probably be a while before anything definitive could be put together.

The third message was from Kikyo, "Hey Rin, it's me. I was just calling to see how you were doing. I know that your weekend is coming up, so I thought that maybe we could do something. . . Anyway let me know. Love you. Bye." Rin sighed. Leave it to Kikyo to check up on her. As much as she wanted to be annoyed with the other woman, she just couldn't bring herself to do so. She made a mental note to call her and let her know she was free for the weekend.

The last message was from Sango, "Hey Rin, it's me. Ah, it's crazy at work so I'm gonna be home late tonight. So . . . I'll see you when I see you. Oh and could you check Kilala's kitty litter. I keep forgetting. Bye." Rin look out the window. She had figured as much. She glanced at the clock on the wall. It was nearly eleven o'clock. Usually once it hit midnight, Sango just decided to stay at work, using one of the bunk beds that were in the station's off-duty room.

Rin looked down at Kilala whose face was tilted up towards her. "It looks like it's just gonna be you and me tonight, girl," she told the cat. Rin reached down and ran her hand along the feline's back. Then she straightened and wrote down Kohaku's message on the notepad near the answering machine where she knew Sango would see it.

Rin then went to the bathroom and checked Kilala's kitty litter before getting undressed. She turned on the water and got in the shower. As the hot water hit her back, she felt herself beginning to relax. Rin sighed once more. She really wished that Sango was there. She hated being at home by herself, especially at night.

When Rin was seven years old, her mother, father and twin brother had been brutally murdered by robbers. She herself had been severely wounded but had somehow survived. Rin brought her hand up to her hair, and ran her fingers along her scalp until they came to the place where her skin had been split open. When her finger's hit the telling mark, Rin's eyes filled with tears. There were some days that she wished she hadn't survived, and other's when she wondered why she had.

Unfortunately, Rin had no immediate family members to take her in, and so upon leaving the hospital she had been placed in foster care while social services looked for a relative to look after her. Rin hadn't been in the program for a month before being taken out. Social services had found a distant aunt of hers that Rin had never met, and transferred guardianship over to her. And so, Rin was shipped out to the country where her Great-Aunt Kaede lived.

Upon arriving, she had been nervous to find another girl living with her aunt. Kikyo Matsuyama was also a relative of Kaede's. She was in fact, Kaede's niece - the daughter of Kaede's younger sister who had decided that her current husband was more important than her daughter. After a few weeks of awkwardness in which everyone adjusted to each other, the three females eventually became a close knit family. Rin spent the rest of her childhood as happy as a she could be, all things considered.

It was only after she moved to the city to attend college that Rin's troubles began. She met Sango during her freshman year where they had been roommates. The outspoken and loyal girl had quickly become one of Rin's closest friends. The duo had partied together, crammed together, cried together and laughed together. They had become as close as sisters.

Rin had dated around but hadn't met anyone she was serious about until her junior year when she met Shun Nakamura.

Shun had been a senior, head of the health sciences club and in the top ten percent of his class. Rin had fallen for him the moment she'd seen him. His long blond hair that fell to his waist and gorgeous green eyes had mesmerized her, blinding her to his cruelty.

Rin stayed with him after the first time he hit her, even though she knew it was wrong. She told herself that he hadn't meant to hit her – he'd had a bad day and she shouldn't have yelled at him. Rin had been unaware that she'd been a victim of Shun's emotional abuse long before he put his hands on her and became more tangled in his web with each passing day. Over time the beatings got worse until her friends started to notice. They all urged her to leave him, Sango leading the way, but she didn't listen.

Rin turned off the water and stepped out of the shower. She grabbed a towel and wrapped it around herself. No, she had refused to listen.

Rin gradually began to pull away from her friends, tired of hearing them say only negative things about Shun. They didn't know him, at least not the way she did. They didn't know how charming he could be, how funny and sweet. They only saw the bruises. Rin graduated from college, started nursing school and in time, got engaged to who she thought was the love of her life.

It was only after the first beating that landed her in the hospital that Rin truly began to fear Shun. While it was true that she had feared him before, it had always been a fleeting type of fear. This new fear was constant and intense. She was afraid to do anything without first getting his permission, lest it upset him. Rin cringed whenever she thought back to how she had given up her voice, her hobbies, everything – just to keep him happy. But it had never been enough for Shun. He always wanted more. Despite that, she always found reasons to stay: she was in nursing school and she couldn't just pack up and leave, what if she left school and never finished, etc.

Eventually, not even her excuses could keep her with him, so she had run away. The first time Rin ran away she had been on her own for six weeks before Shun caught up with her. She hadn't seen him in town, but when she got home she found a bag in front of her door. When she opened it, she'd found the dog that she had adopted from the local animal shelter inside of it. The dog was dead. Rin had packed up her things and headed back home without a fight, too scared to do anything else.

The second time she ran away only three weeks had passed. Shun had waited until they were home before he broke both her legs. And the third time Rin hadn't even been gone for a week before returning home, terrified that Shun would kill her if her found her.

It would have continued in the same manner if something drastic hadn't happened: Rin had gotten pregnant. She'd thought that Shun would be happy but instead he'd been livid. Rin towel-dried her hair vigorously while blinking back tears.

Shun had been unwilling to believe that he was the father of her child, despite Rin's assurances that he was. He screamed that he wasn't going to be made into a fool and slapped her so hard that she fell to the floor. He then proceeded to kick her in the stomach until the cops stormed in. Rin was rushed to the hospital, but it was too late. She lost the baby. After that, all of Rin's love for Shun disappeared.

As soon as she was capable of putting two thoughts together she had called Sango, and after apologizing and crying for what felt like hours asked for help. Sango, being the kind and loyal person that she was, agreed and was by Rin's side within the hour. Rin then called Aunt Kaede and Kikyo. When Kaede arrived she had become so hysterical that the hospital staff sedated her. That had been a frightening experience for Rin – she'd never seen her aunt lose it like that. Kikyo on the other hand had been livid. In fact it was difficult to say which one was more livid – Kikyo or Sango.

Rin walked to her room and pulled on a ratty t-shirt and some pajama bottoms. She smiled as she remembered the scene that had occurred when Shun had the audacity to show up in her hospital room. Kaede had been out, thankfully. Rin didn't know what would've happened if she'd been there. Kikyo had slapped Shun. Twice. Sango drop-kicked him in the nuts. In the end, Sango, Kikyo and Shun were escorted out of the hospital by security.

Her remaining time in the hospital was rather peaceful after that. Rin refused to press charges against Shun. She felt that would be pressing her luck, besides all the law would do is slap his hands and send him on his way. The justice system didn't give a damn about what men did to women.

By the time Rin left the hospital she and the others had developed a plan. She would go with Kaede back to the country and wait there until Sango found an apartment that was close to Rin's job. The four women had decided that Sango would be the safest person for Rin to stay with, seeing as she was a cop. Having an apartment that was close to her job was also important, because it would limit the time Shun had to snatch her off the street, should he choose to do so. Sango also planned to enroll Rin in a self-defense program upon her return. Throughout the whole ordeal, Rin had been grateful that she had such wonderful people in her life.

In the end, everything worked out perfectly. Sango found a place that was only twenty minutes from Rin's job and twenty-five minutes from her own. Rin also took the self-defense class, though it didn't make her feel that much safer than she'd felt before taking it. Rin had spent her time in the country learning about the nature of abusive relationships. One of the things that she learned was that the most dangerous time for a woman in an abusive relationship was the first year after she left her abuser, which was why Rin felt so uneasy. Shun had always let her know that he knew where she was as soon as he found her. Rin wasn't so naïve as to think that he didn't know where she was. She still worked at the same place, so it would be an easy matter to just follow her home from work one day. So then, why hadn't he made a move yet? It couldn't be that he had moved on. Rin knew that he would never let her go without a fight.

Rin pulled back the covers on her bed and got into it. She was about to turn off the light when she remembered to check the house. So she got up and walked through the house, turning off all the lights and making sure that all the windows and doors were locked. It was probably silly to make sure the windows were locked when she lived on the twelfth floor, but Rin wasn't taking any chances.

Once she was satisfied that everything was locked, Rin walked back to her room. Kilala had settled on the few pillows that Rin hadn't taken off the bed. She smiled, turned off the light and tried to go to sleep.

* * *

><p>Across the street a man lowered his binoculars as the window that he had been watching went dark. He had been standing in the park across from the apartments for the last hour, ever since he'd followed her home.<p>

He lifted the binoculars to his face once more and smiled. "Sleep well, my love."

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><p><strong>AN: Sesshomaru and Rin should meet within the next two chapters. Thank you to those of you who have stuck with me so far. I promise that the story will speed up now that I've gotten just about all of the background info out of the way.**

**Your reviews are always appreciated and valued, so feel free to let me know what you think of the story so far. Thanks.**


	5. An Accident or Fate

**I do not own Inuyasha.**

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><p>Rin entered the hip Italian restaurant and looked around for Kikyo. Once she spotted her, she wandered to her table and took a seat across from her older cousin, more than a little bewildered as to why Kikyo wanted to see her again so soon.<p>

It wasn't that Rin and Kikyo didn't like spending time together, it was just that they also enjoyed their space. Besides they had spent all day Saturday together: shopping, talking and doing other girl stuff. Rin personally didn't mind meeting Kikyo on a Tuesday after spending all Saturday with her - she just found it a little strange. Even stranger was the cryptic message that Kikyo had left asking Rin to meet her at the restaurant.

Rin smiled and gave the waitress her drink order before turning her attention back to Kikyo. Her cousin had yet to say anything to her, which was out of character. Rin cleared her throat and said, "So, what brings you out to this part of town on one of your busiest days?"

Kikyo seemed to relax a little and gave Rin a small smile, "One of my busiest days? Today is the first day of your work week. If it's anybody's busiest day, it's yours."

"True," Rin agreed. Rin was a surgical nurse at Hamasaki Hospital, one of the best hospitals in Japan. She worked fifteen hour shifts on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, while having the rest of the week off; the days she worked were the busiest for surgeries at the hospital. Rin was lucky that she had made it out for lunch at all.

The conversation continued much the same way throughout much of the meal. Rin was really puzzled by the time their dishes had been cleared away. Why had Kikyo called her here? She'd sounded like she had something urgent to talk about, but so far all they'd discussed was their work, the weather and the mysterious killings happening all over town, with a brief stop at Aunt Kaede's health.

As a plate of powdered doughnuts and chocolate dipping sauce was placed in front of them Kikyo pulled her hair over one shoulder and pinned Rin with a look that usually made the younger woman groan. "Rin, there's a fertility clinic in Hamasaki Hospital isn't there?"

Thrown by the sudden change in conversation, Rin nodded an affirmative.

"Have you noticed anything strange about any of the patients," Kikyo continued, suddenly intense.

Rin was more than just a little confused. "Anything strange about the patients of the fertility clinic," she slowly repeated. Kikyo only nodded.

Why did Kikyo want to know about fertility patients? True she was an OB/GYN but still . . . "Anything strange like what, exactly," Rin asked, still trying to figure out where Kikyo was going with this line of questioning.

"You know, anything out of the ordinary," Kikyo said, gesturing with her free hand.

Like that was so much more specific. Rin leaned back in her chair and looked at her cousin for a minute before sighing. "Why would I notice something strange about patients that I don't even see," she said tiredly. Sometimes Kikyo could be exhausting.

Kikyo gave a frustrated sigh before grabbing a doughnut and dipping it in the sauce. "Why do you want to know something like that anyway," Rin asked, before a teasing smile lit her face. "Unless you think you know who's behind all those killings."

The expression that comment solicited from Kikyo wiped the smile from Rin's face. Suddenly she felt very scared. "Kikyo, what's going on? What did you find out?"

"It's nothing. It's just . . . never mind," she said shaking her head.

Rin rolled her eyes. "I hate when you do that. Just say it."

Rin watched as Kikyo casually looked around the restaurant to make sure that no one was listening to them before placing an elbow on the table, and lowering her voice. "Do me a favor, ask around at the hospital and see if anyone has noticed anything off in the fertility clinic, ok? But do it discreetly and only ask people who you know you can trust, Rin," Kikyo said, while her eyes wandered around the restaurant. Rin realized that whatever her cousin had stumbled upon was big, otherwise Kikyo wouldn't be acting so . . . nervous.

Rin wasn't ready to be dragged into whatever Kikyo had gotten involved in. She was still trying to recover from her psychotic ex-fiancée. "If it's something that can help the police or . . . something like that, then you should go to them."

Kikyo was shaking her head before Rin finished her sentence. "I'll go to them when I have a little more information."

Rin could feel the panic rising in her chest. What was Kikyo thinking? "What do you mean you'll go to them when you have more information? Kikyo, there's a madman on the loose. What if something happens to you before you're able to tell the police what you've found?" Rin was unaware that her voice had risen.

Kikyo grabbed her hand and squeezed it. "Don't worry about me. I'll be fine." When she saw tears forming in Rin's eyes she quickly changed tactics. "Look, the sooner you look into things for me the sooner I can tell the police, okay," Kikyo said. She hated seeing the frightened look in Rin's eyes and suddenly felt guilty for putting more weight on her shoulders. The past year had been so hard for the younger woman.

"Just ask around for me," Kikyo said, giving Rin's hand one more assuring squeeze before letting go.

Rin watched with wide eyes as Kikyo looked at the check that had been placed on the table when their dessert was delivered and pulled out some money. Then she stood up and reached into her purse, bringing out a book.

Kikyo handed the book to Rin saying, "I thought this might interest you, my little gardener. I'll see you later." Then she was gone.

Rin looked at the book. There were pictures of lilacs on the cover and the title read The World's Most Beautiful and Exotic Flowers. Rin opened the front cover and saw a yellow post-it on the first page. On it Kikyo had written: _**Look at the hormones and prenatal vitamins. Make sure they're what the charts say they are.**_

Rin sat there for a few more minutes, trying to figure out what Kikyo's note meant. Was somebody switching out the medicine. What the hell was going on?

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><p>Not that far away from where Rin and Kikyo had lunch, Sesshomaru was leaving a high-class seafood restaurant, having concluded an informal business meeting with a future client. Mr. Bradley was the head of one the American companies that Taisho Inc. was currently trying to entice into a contract with them. He had come over to Japan to get a closer look at the work that Taisho Inc. did. Sesshomaru knew that it would only be a matter of time before the American caved.<p>

Sesshomaru hailed a cab and saw his future client into it, promising him that he would see him soon.

Once the taxi had pulled off, Sesshomaru pulled out his cell phone and called his driver, telling him to meet him around the corner. He then turned and had taken no more than three steps when he heard someone call out to him. Sesshomaru turned and saw that it was Inuyasha's woman. Suddenly he wished that he had just kept going.

Kagome made her way through the jostling crowd to Sesshomaru. When she reached him she was slightly out of breath, but she still smiled at him. "Fancy meeting you here. I thought you didn't like coming to the city? At least that's what Inuyasha said."

Sesshomaru looked out at the crowded street. He _didn't_ like coming to the city. The stench was too much for his delicate nose, so he preferred to spend as little time in the human cesspool as possible.

When he looked back at the human female, he realized that she was talking again. Apparently she had taken his silence as a cue to go on. "I wanted to ask you . . . What caterer are you and Kagura using for your mating ceremony? Inuyasha and I are having a difficult time finding one. A good one, I mean. I'm actually on my way to see one now. It's Souma's Delicious Delights. Have you heard of them? Apparently they combine western and eastern style cuisines, which Izayoi assured me is fine . . ."

Sesshomaru tuned out. She didn't really expect him to answer, did she? He didn't understand what it was about weddings and mating ceremonies that made women talk a mile a minute.

Sesshomaru began to walk Kagome to the street curb, where he hailed a taxi for her. The girl stopped talking and glanced at her watch before smiling at him apologetically. "I'm sorry, but I really have to go. Wish me luck." And with that she got in the car and shut the door.

Sesshomaru resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He had never met a more self-absorbed person in his life. It was no wonder that she and Inuyasha got on so well.

He had just reached the corner when he heard a loud crashing noise followed by screams. Sesshomaru didn't even pause. It was nothing that concerned him. Besides it was probably just a car crash. Amazing how humans could get worked up over such petty things.

Sesshomaru was about to return to his ponderings on the next move he should take with the American when the smell of blood wafted over to him. He came to a dead stop. He knew this blood.

Sesshomaru jumped onto the nearest car that was parked on the curb and looked down the street towards the accident.

The cab that he'd put Kagome in had been bulldozed into a street lamp. Even as Sesshomaru watched the street lamp fell onto the hood of the cab, shattering all the glass windows. He could just barely make out Kagome's slumped form through all the twisted metal. The scent of her blood grew stronger, which meant that she must be bleeding profusely.

Sesshomaru wished like hell that he could just walk away. After all, she wasn't a member of the family yet. With that in mind, he jumped off the car and prepared to continue on to his car but instead found that he couldn't just walk away. He turned around and started to make his way toward the crushed taxi.

Shit.

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><p>Three hours later Sesshomaru was talking on his phone in the surgical wing of Hamasaki Hospital. He had been pacing up and down the hall while making phone calls to his father, his office and was currently on the phone with Inuyasha.<p>

Inuyasha was trying his best to make Sesshomaru go deaf. He had been yelling into the phone for the last five minutes. "And you're sure that Kagome is okay? Why did it take you so long to call me anyway?"

Sesshomaru growled into the phone, scaring a few passing nurses in the process. He didn't know if she was okay or not. A couple of nurses had just rolled her into a room. Sesshomaru heard her heart beating, so in his opinion, yes, the human wench was fine. Why, _why_ did his father and brother have to be so taken with such weak women?

"Ok, ok. Look, I'll be there in like four hours," Inuyasha said. Inuyasha was the head of construction at one of the sites outside of town.

Sesshomaru raised a brow even though he knew that Inuyasha couldn't see him. "Four hours?"

"Yeah, well, you know. Traffic's a bitch at this hour," was all that Inuyasha said. "Besides I'm way out in the boondocks."

Sesshomaru closed his eyes. His brother could be such an idiot at times. "Inuyasha, are you or are you not a demon?"

"Oh oh oh. Is somebody finally acknowledging me?"

Sesshomaru was sorely tempted to crush the phone. If it had been Inuyasha's head then he would have. "Inuyasha, you would get here faster if you ran."

There was silence on the other end. "Oh, yeah. You're right," Inuyasha said weakly.

"Just get here as fast as you can. I'm tired of babysitting your woman." With that he hung up.

Sesshomaru then walked back to the chair that his suit jacket was on. He hated hospitals. They smelled even worse than the streets did. He was just about to sit down when his phone rang. Sesshomaru wanted to hurl the damn thing out the window. Instead he looked at the caller id and answered saying, "What is it Kagura?"

Whatever Kagura had to say was lost on Sesshomaru. He had turned around while answering the phone and found himself face to face with the girl from his dream.

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><p><strong>AN: So it's a bit of a cliffhanger. It was either that or make you wait another chapter. All the same I know you're going **_**finally.**_** (^^)**

**Let me know what you think. And thanks for sticking it out with me for so long.**


	6. Unexpected

**I do not own Inuyasha.**

Rin made it back to the hospital just in time to scrub in on a surgery, which she considered fortunate since it wiped her cryptic meeting with Kikyo from her mind for the next few hours. The patient was a young female who was in a car accident. She had a broken leg, sprained wrist, ruptured spleen, a severe concussion and multiple minor cuts and abrasions that were taken care of after she had been closed up. A neurologist recommended that she be closely watched over the next twenty four hours due to the severity of her concussion. After everything had been taken care of on that end, Rin turned the patient over to a pair of nurses with very little experience, told them to take the patient to her room and leave her there. Someone else would take care of the rest.

After scrubbing down, Rin checked the charts that she had been assigned and saw that the young woman who she had just been in surgery with was assigned to her. She decided to go and check on her.

Rin walked through the halls greeting doctors and nurses alike. Here, in the hospital, was one of the few places where she felt safe and secure.

As she approached her patient's room, Rin's eye was caught by a rather impressive figure. He was tall, unusually so, especially for this country. He must have been 6'6" or maybe a little over. He also had long, thick silver hair that shone brilliantly in the suddenly dull hallway.

It was that long hair that put her on her guard. Rin was a sucker for guys with long hair, and the hair on this mystery man fell to his knees, although it was currently pulled into a thick braid. It was something that she had been made fun of – but Rin simply found men with long hair to be practically irresistible. Fortunately it wasn't a very common look. Very few men could pull off having hair that was longer than most women's and still look masculine, but those that could . . . Shun's hair had fallen to right above his waist.

As Rin walked around him, she heard him speak. Shivers raced down her spine at the sound of that smooth, rich baritone. He had a voice like velvet. She was seized with an overwhelming desire to see the face that went with that hair and that voice. Right before Rin entered the room, she snuck a peek at her mystery man's face and just barely prevented herself from doing a double take and staring at him like some love-struck idiot.

_Demon_. That was the first thing that popped into her mind. There was a blue crescent moon on his forehead. Well, that explained the long hair. Most demons preferred to wear their hair longer than humans did, why Rin wasn't sure. The marking on his forehead served as proof of both his strength and his age. Only the oldest and most powerful demons had markings on their faces, something she had learned from her Aunt Kaede who was a priestess.

His eyes had mesmerized her. They were a deep molten gold that seemed to freeze her in her tracks. The fact that he was staring at her like she had three heads wasn't helping her composure either. Rin walked to the bed and stood there for a few minutes, regaining her bearings. Her heart was threatening to beat out of her chest and she knew that her face was on fire. She supposed that it was a small favor that her patient was still unconscious, because the last thing Rin needed was to be caught looking flustered after furtively ogling this girl's . . . friend. At least she assumed he was her friend. He was standing outside her room, for God's sake.

She took a deep breath and reached for the chart that was hanging on the end of the bed. Opening it she located the space that contained her patient's name. _Kagome Higurashi_. Hmmm it sounded familiar, but Rin couldn't figure out where she had heard it before. She quickly ran her eyes down the chart and saw that Kagome needed a blood transfusion. She looked around for the medical cart and saw a packet of blood lying on it. Walking over to the cart she confirmed that the blood was the correct type before picking it up and hooking it up to the girl on the bed.

By the time Rin was finished setting up the transfusion and checking the other equipment, Kagome was beginning to stir. Rin walked over to the chart and began to fill it in, adding notes at the bottom when she was finished. As she closed the binder, she saw the woman's eyes flutter open before falling shut once more. Sighing Rin put the chart back on the rung at the end of the bed and turned to leave.

"Wait," came a gravelly voice from behind her. Rin quickly turned around and walked to the side of the bed. Kagome's eyes were open once more, but they were still clouded from the anesthesia. "Inuyasha? Where's Inuyasha," she asked turning her head drowsily to look for him.

Rin looked around the room just to make sure that no one had slipped in while she wasn't looking before answering. "No. He's not here, but I'm sure that he'll be here soon," she said in her most soothing voice. All she got was a half nod from the woman before her eyes shut again.

Rin leaned back. Inuyasha. So that's why the woman's name had sounded so familiar. She was Inuyasha's mate, or fiancée, or whatever demons called their significant others. Everyone knew that. The Taisho's and Miyamoto's were practically royalty in Japan, and their lives were followed just as avidly as if they _were_ royalty. Of course, both families were extremely reclusive, rarely venturing into the public spotlight unless it was absolutely necessary, but still . . . Rin knew what they looked like, and the man outside the door definitely was _not_ Inuyasha. Inuyasha was the one with little dog ear's on his head, of course that wasn't saying much because his other two brother had dog ears too. And Takahiro, the patriarch of the family, usually always wore his hair in a high ponytail, not a braid. It could be . . . But she had never seen him with his hair in a braid. Then again, the only photos she had seen of him were formal ones, so she really had no idea how he usually wore his hair.

Rin shook her head slightly. Why did it matter who the mystery man outside the door was? It should be enough that she knew that he was a Taisho; she didn't need to know which one. Besides, what good would it do her to know? She was still trying to get over her ex-fiancée. She was in no way ready to get involved with another man. . . . Wait! What on earth was she saying? She wasn't going to get involved with him. Even if it was him, he had a girlfriend – she was pregnant for God's sake. It had been all over the news for weeks now. No. The only thing she was going to do was admire from a far.

No sooner had Rin had the thought than she felt two points of heat on her back. She didn't need to turn around to know that the mystery man was looking at her. She kept her gaze on the wall as he walked up to the bed so that he was standing on the other side of it. From the corner of her eye she saw that he looked even better than he had the first time she saw him. In a tailored black silk suit with a light gray shirt on underneath it, he looked like perfection personified.

Kagome's eyes were open once more and she was looking at the newcomer with ill-disguised irritation. "Where's Inuyasha? Why isn't he here yet," she demanded as forcefully as she could. Unfortunately her demand was ruined by a round of coughing as soon as the words were out of her mouth. Rin handed Kagome some water after she was finished coughing.

"Thank you," Kagome said weakly. "How long was I in surgery?"

"Around an hour and a half," Rin replied with a gentle smile. Clearly the girl was still out of it.

"Oh, so does Inuyasha even know what happened? What about my mom and grandpa?"

"My brother is on his way. I just got off the phone with him," said her mystery man. Rin felt shivers go down her spine again. It should be illegal for a man to sound that sexy.

"Sesshomaru," Kagome asked, looking puzzled at finding him there. _Crap so she was right_.

Sesshomaru had been looking intently at Rin ever since he had come up to the bed. Rin in the meantime was looking everywhere but at him. She wished that he would stop staring at her so, it was unnerving. At the sound of his name his eyes flicked down to survey Kagome with a galling air of detachment.

The moment his eyes left her Rin pulled in a deep breath. She had been unaware until the moment air rushed back into her oxygen-starved lungs that she wasn't breathing. Releasing her breath she turned, looked Sesshomaru dead in the face and asked, "Would you like hear about Kagome's injuries?"

"No."

_Okay_. Maybe the reason why he was staring at her was because she was human. Rin had heard that he wasn't too fond of them. And he had totally shot her down. Obviously he didn't care about his sister-in-law enough to even pretend to be interested in her health.

"I'm sure that the girl's mother will be here shortly. You can tell her all about them," Sesshomaru said, pinning her with his golden gaze once more.

Rin started to open the binder containing the chart once more before she remembered that she had already checked it, so her hand went to her hair, twirling the hair of her little side ponytail around her finger. Suddenly she stopped, mortified. Only teenagers twirled their hair around their fingers like that. Rin looked around desperately for something to do, when her eyes lighted on Kagome's cast. After asking her if her leg was raised to a comfortable height Rin beat a hasty retreat, feeling Sesshomaru's eyes on her the entire way.

* * *

><p>Kagome watched bemusedly as Sesshomaru stared out the door after the nurse had disappeared from it.<p>

"You can stop glaring now. She not's here to appreciate it anymore," she said as lightly as she could manage under the circumstances. Her head was killing her.

Sesshomaru's eyes snapped back to her and Kagome was treated to the full force of his glare. She suddenly wished that she hadn't said anything. Sesshomaru's glares were nothing to laugh at. It was no wonder the nurse had all but run out the room, but still, he could be a little nicer to her. She was only lying, injured, on a hospital bed.

Kagome was more than a little surprised to find him at her bedside. The very last person she expected to see here was Sesshomaru. Kagome had always found her brother-in-law to be cold, arrogant and intimidating. Actually, she found his mother's family to be that way too, so the very last person she expected to rescue her was Sesshomaru. After all, even though she and Inuyasha were married, he still didn't consider her to be part of the family, not placing much stock in human ceremonies. Kagome knew that he wouldn't see her as family until the mating ceremony took place; therefore there was really no reason for him to help her at all. At least that was the way most demons thought, Sesshomaru especially. Kagome turned her head to look out the window as images of the car accident came flooding back to her.

Her taxi had just pulled away from the curve and was heading into a busy intersection when Kagome had felt a huge jolt shake her frame, slamming her head into the passenger side window. Everything had gone black. When she came to a few minutes later, it was to hear an awful grating sound that turned out to be the roof being ripped of the car and sirens in the distance. Seconds later bright light hit her eyes and Kagome looked up to see Sesshomaru peering down at her. He had reached down to put a neck brace on her, then ripped the door away before lifting her broken body out of the car with a gentleness that she had thought him incapable of.

Without stopping to think of how he'd react, Kagome reached for Sesshomaru's hand and said, "Thank you."

She didn't get a response, at least not a verbal one. Not that she had been expecting one. All he did was look at her before moving his gaze to their hands.

"Your family is here," and with that he was gone.

As soon as he left the room Kagome's mother and grandfather appeared in the doorway. Her mother immediately rushed to her side, while her grandfather walked slowly to the chair located close to the bed and collapsed in it, dropping the bag he was carrying to the floor.

"Oh honey, are you alright? What happened? We would have gotten hear sooner, but the train decided not to show up, then there was so much traffic-"

"Mom, it's ok," Kagome said cutting her mother off mid-sentence. She didn't want her mother to worry about hurting her feelings. Inuyasha on the other hand . . .

Kagome tried to push herself up, but cried out when she felt a pang shoot up her right arm. She collapsed back against the bed and look at the offending arm. Her wrist was in a brace. Great, she must have broken that too. Kagome closed her eyes and tried to stave off tears, wishing more than anything that Inuyasha was there. If he was there, she could cry to her heart's content, but if she cried now her mother would just worry about her more than ever.

"Oh, Kagome what is it? Do you need anything," her mother said, hovering over her and twisting her hands.

"No, mom I'm fine. I just hurt my wrist is all." Kagome lifted her arm to show her mom the brace.

"Maybe you should ice it down. Did the doctor say?" Kagome hated seeing the worry on her mother's face. She was such a source of strength for herself and Souta, speaking of which . . .

"No. The doctor hasn't been by yet, just the nurse. Mom, where's Souta? I hope he's not rushing out here," Kagome said. Her younger brother was a freshman in college and the last thing she wanted to do was cause him to worry about her. The first year of college was stressful enough without having to worry about what was going on at home.

Kagome's mother smiled. "No, he's not rushing down here. He was taking a test when I called, but he said that he would try to make it down here as soon as possible. So I'm guessing that means sometime tomorrow afternoon," she said fluffing the pillows behind Kagome's back.

"Are you sure that you're okay, Kagome," her grandfather asked taking in the leg cast and blood transfusion.

"I'm fine, really. It looks worse than it actually is," Kagome said holding her hands up. She prayed that what she was saying was true.

"Where's Inuyasha? We saw Sesshomaru in hall," her mother said straightening up and looking around, as if she just missed seeing another person in the room.

"He's on his way. I remember him saying something about working out in the boondocks today . . . but I don't know how far away it was," Kagome said with a little laugh. Inuyasha thought that any place farther than 10 miles away was the boondocks.

"Well," left with nothing to do, her mother sat on the bed. "So did the nurse tell you anything?"

"No. She asked Sesshomaru if he would like to know the damage report but he told her no."

Her mother rolled her eyes. "I can just imagine."

Kagome laughed. "Yeah, he was pretty brutal. But I'm guessing that when the doctor does show up, he'll say that all I need is a little rest and relaxation."

"And this," her grandfather had walked to the side of the bed and was currently brandishing a canister of dried tea leaves under her nose. "This is a secret herbal remedy guaranteed to speed the healing process. It has been passed down in our family for generations. It has . . ."

Kagome tuned out, knowing that she wasn't missing anything special. Her grandpa was always saying things like this.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I was planning on putting Sesshomaru's point of view in here, but I got thrown off by the whole Kagome thing. So look forward to hearing Sesshomaru's side of things in the next chapter. Miyamoto is Sesshomaru's mother and her family's last name (if that threw any of you off).**

**Also sorry, so sorry, it took me a while to update. I wish that I could say that I'll try to be better, but with school getting ready to start and all . . .**

**Thank you to those of you who have reviewed/put this on your alerts list, it keeps me motivated. Please let me know what you thought of this chapter. Thanks and until next time. **


	7. The First Step to Something More

**I do not own Inuyasha**

Sesshomaru breathed deeply through his nose as he looked down at the mountain of medical paperwork that he still had to look over. Ordinarily he wouldn't be caught dead helping out his idiot half-brother or his mate-to-be, so why was he doing this? Because it gave him an excuse to hang around the hospital and potentially see that nurse again.

Sesshomaru knew that he could just search the hospital for her, but that would cause a scene, and he wasn't the type to cause scenes. As his eyes ran down the document, he was aware of his senses searching her out through the myriad of people in the building. She was still in the hospital - he knew that with every fiber of his being, but where? Why did he even care? She was just a nurse, a human one at that. Why was he so determined to see her again?

Because he had been looking for her ever since the first time he'd had that dream centuries ago, and now that he'd found her he'd be damned if he'd let her slip away because she was human. Maybe now he would be able to finally figure out what that dream meant.

Sesshomaru's musings were interrupted when he caught a familiar scent drifting down the hallway. He looked up to see Inuyasha running towards him. He was breathing heavily and his face was sweaty. Quite clearly he had taken the hint and ran to the hospital. Sesshomaru checked his watch. Inuyasha had gotten here even quicker than he'd anticipated – barely an hour had passed since he'd last spoken to him. Unable to resist the urge to irritate him, Sesshomaru said, "Out of breath Inuyasha."

"SHUT UP."

Sesshomaru watched his brother run down the hallway before turning his attention back to the paperwork in front of him.

* * *

><p>Rin's encounter with Sesshomaru had completely driven her meeting with Kikyo from her mind for the next couple of hours. It wasn't until she was passing the fertility clinic that it all came crashing back to her. Rin lingered outside the doors unsure of what to do. Why did Kikyo have to put her in a situation like this? She would be better off just going to the police with whatever she had discovered and letting them do the rest. That was the logical, safe thing to do. Rin sighed. But since when had Kikyo ever done what was logical and safe?<p>

Rin closed her eyes and once again saw her cousin reaching across the table with a smile on her face. _"Look, the sooner you look into this for me the sooner I can go to the police."_ Rin opened her eyes and took a deep breath. Just as she turned to face the clinic, the doors opened and a nurse with her arms full of charts entered the hallway. Rin recognized her immediately.

Yomiko Takamura was one of the first people at the hospital to befriend Rin when she first started working there. Smiling Rin walked over to her. Yomiko saw her coming and called out, "Hey Rin! How's it going?"

"Good. And you?"

Yomiko shrugged. "I don't know. It seems like all I ever do anymore is work."

Rin laughed, "I know the feeling."

They walked in silence for a few seconds before Rin blurted out. "I need to talk to you. Do you have a minute?"

Yomiko looked at the younger woman with wide eyes before pushing her glasses up her nose. "Yeah, just give me a sec."

By this time they had reached one of the many nurse stations that were scattered throughout the hospital. Yomiko put the charts down with a sigh, opened them and hurriedly began to sign them off so that they could be processed. Once she had finished she stretched her hands out in front her, lacing her fingers together. Upon straightening Yomiko glanced at Rin. "Ok what's up?"

Rin opened her mouth before quickly shutting it. "Let's go up to the roof."

* * *

><p>Thirty minutes later found both Rin and Yomiko on top of the roof of Hamasaki Hospital, bundled up against the cool fall evening. Rin was looking at her feet while waiting for Yomiko to respond to her request.<p>

"So let me get this straight. Kikyo thinks that she's found something connecting the women that the serial killer has been targeting," Yomiko started.

Rin nodded.

"And rather than going to the police like any sane person would, she decided to enlist the help of her cousin."

Rin nodded.

"But she doesn't want you to tell Sango about it, or anyone else for that matter. However she does want you to tell someone that you trust?" By this point the Yomiko's confusion was audible.

Rin nodded once again.

Yomiko let out a short, frustrated sigh and raised the note that Kikyo had snuck to Rin to the light for inspection once more. After examining it for a few minutes, she lowered her hand and looked at Rin. "What I don't get is the vitamins and prenatal hormones. What's that got to do with anything?"

Rin could only shrug. She felt like such a jerk for dragging someone into what could potentially be a dangerous situation because of her cousin's stubbornness. She finally looked up and met the other woman's eyes, "If you don't want to do it then I'd totally understand. I mean, even I don't want to do it."

Yomiko studied Rin for a moment before looking at Kikyo's note again. "No that's okay. The thing that's worrying me is how to check on this stuff without getting fired."

Rin's jawed dropped. She hadn't actually been expecting Yomiko to go along with it. Actually Rin had been hoping that she wouldn't so that way she could tell Kikyo that she'd had no luck on her end and drag her down to the police station, or to Sango at the very least.

"And what exactly am I supposed to be looking for," Yomiko continued, completely unaware of Rin's shock.

"Ummm . . . I don't know," Rin glanced away. "Kikyo wasn't very specific. You know all that I know." Rin buried her face in her hands. She had a really bad feeling about all this. "You know what, let's just forget about this whole thing okay?"

Yomiko was looking up at the sky, "Let's not."

Rin's head shot up out of her hands. Yomiko looked at her with a smile. "What can I say, I'm intrigued."

Intrigued? What the hell was wrong with people like her and Kikyo? Didn't they have any sense of self-preservation? "Bu-bu-but you said yourself that you could lose your job if you're caught and we don't even know what we're looking for. How will you know when you've found it? This . . . this could all just be some wild goose chase."

Yomiko held up a hand to cut off Rin's attempt at reason. "Rin, relax. My brother's a total lab freak with access to his very own lab, remember? All I have to do is sneak out some of the hormones and vitamins and he'll test it for us."

"How will you know what to sneak out?"

Yomiko laughed and pat Rin's shoulder, "Don't worry, I'll figure something out." She glanced at her watch, "Wow I didn't realize we'd been up her for so long. We'd better get back before someone notices."

Yomiko headed towards the door while Rin was left staring after her friend, trepidation growing in her chest.

* * *

><p>Sesshomaru gave the last of the medical documents to the nurse sitting behind a desk. Several hours had passed, it was completely dark outside and the moon hung high in the sky. If he so much as saw another medical form he'd kill someone. Needless to say he was in a foul mood.<p>

He'd taken his sweet time going over those damn forms, and the nurse hadn't even had the decency to check back in on Inuyasha's woman. She was the girl's nurse right? It was a complete waste of his evening. Sesshomaru shrugged into his coat and turned to leave.

"Hey, Sesshomaru." He turned around and saw a belligerent Inuyasha walking towards him. Sesshomaru prepared himself for the irritation that was Inuyasha.

"Kagome just spent the last couple of hours commenting on how long it took me to get here," Inuyasha all but growled.

"Your point."

Inuyasha glared at him. "Why the hell did it take you so long to call me? I should have been the first person you called, not the last."

Sesshomaru looked away. Was this all? "I had more important matters to attend to. I called Father. I assumed that he would have called you."

"Well he didn't. And what's with all this more important crap you're spewing . . . Are you saying that the business is more important that Kagome."

"Yes."

Inuyasha leaped at Sesshomaru, but suddenly Takahiro was there. He grabbed a fistful of Inuyasha's shirt and hissed, "Don't you dare cause a scene."

Inuyasha's ears lay flat. He looked around to see his mother watching him with wide eyes.

Takahiro straightened his suit jacket. "It's my fault that you didn't hear about the accident earlier. I was about to call you, when an important call came in. It ended up taking longer than I'd thought it would. Sorry about that, son." Sesshomaru looked at his father. Clearly he'd heard what had caused Inuyasha's little fit and was trying to calm him down. "Besides," Takahiro continued, "You should be thanking Sesshomaru. If it weren't for him Kagome's injuries would probably be more serious than they actually are. And he's filled out all the paperwork that _you_ were supposed to do."

Izayoi stepped forward. "Your father's right Inuyasha."

Inuyasha just snorted and looked away.

Izayoi's eyes narrowed, "Either apologize or say thank you."

"There's no way in hell-" Inuyasha began.

"Inuyasha," a warning note had entered Izayoi's voice.

"But-,"

"Inuyasha," Takahiro snapped.

"Okay, okay," Inuyasha said hastily, watching the red fade from his father's eyes. He looked at Sesshomaru – but the words just wouldn't come.

Sesshomaru smirked and walked away. His motives for helping Inuyasha were selfish at best. As he got off the elevator, he slowed down. His senses were going berserk. It was the girl – she was close. Sesshomaru turned the corner and sure enough, there she was.

She was standing to the side of the front entrance to the hospital, looking out into the night. By the looks of her, she was off for the night and ready to go home. Perhaps she had called for a taxi? He wondered vaguely while his eyes roamed her face. Her resemblance to the girl in his dream was uncanny.

Her hair fell to the middle of her back, and was so dark a brown that it almost looked black. Her cream colored skin only accentuated the clear brown depths of her eyes. And earlier she'd even had her hair pulled up into that ridiculous side ponytail that the girl in his dream sported.

Sesshomaru slowly walked over to her, a hunter that had spotted its prey, however as he drew closer to her, he could smell her fear. Sesshomaru looked around. There was nothing that he could see or hear that could frighten her. Sesshomaru walked right up to her and was rewarded with a startled squeak and a jump.

He raised a brow. "I didn't mean to startle you."

"No, that's okay. I should have been paying attention," she said with a nervous laugh.

Her voice wasn't exactly seductive, but there was a unique husky quality to it that made it very distinctive. Sesshomaru studied her profile, "Are you afraid to go outside?"

"What makes you say that?"

"I can smell it on you."

Rin lowered her eyes. "Yeah, well there's a lot out there that frightens me."

Like what? That's what he wanted to ask, but Sesshomaru had already broken a lot of his personal rules just by approaching her and starting a conversation. Besides, once you started asking people questions they tended to think that they could do the same to you. He looked out the window.

They stayed that way for a few minutes. "Do you live close by," he asked.

He saw her draw her jacket close. "Yeah, why?"

"I'll give you a ride."

"No!"

Sesshomaru turned to face her. That was the first time a woman outside of his family had ever told him no. "Then I'll walk you home."

"That isn't necessary. You don't even know me," she said all this while staring at her feet. Sesshomaru had the strongest urge to lift her face so that he could see her eyes.

"You said that there were many things out there that frighten you."

For the first time during their whole conversation she looked directly at him, "There are but . . ."

Sesshomaru walked to the doors, "Come along then. My car is waiting."

"I'd prefer to walk," she said softly.

"Then we'll walk." Sesshomaru walked out of the hospital and listened for the sound of her footsteps falling behind him.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: This is just a little something to prove that I haven't abandoned the story. Sorry its taken me so long.**


	8. Revelation

**I do not own Inuyasha.**

Rin walked beside Sesshomaru quietly. She was more than surprised by his offer to see her home, especially after his behavior earlier. He had been downright hostile. At least that's what she thought, but maybe he'd been . . . something else? Rin wasn't sure. He was an enigma. What's more, she couldn't spend too much time pondering on it; if she did she might embarrass herself. She could already feel herself beginning to panic from being outside the safety of a walled building.

No one – no man rather – had walked her home since a little before she'd started seeing Shun. Plenty had offered, but she'd always turned them down. At first it was because she was seeing Shun, then it was because she didn't want to provoke his anger and now it was because she simply wasn't ready to trust another male. So then why was she letting a complete stranger walk her home, she asked herself.

Rin glanced at Sesshomaru from the corner of her eye. He was looking straight forward, his hands tucked into the pockets of his heavy coat. He'd brushed off her attempts to turn him down so effortlessly that it had been disconcerting. She didn't know why that surprised her. He was obviously a man used to getting what he wanted. Although why he'd want to walk her home was beyond her. And yet despite all of the confusion that he was causing her, Rin couldn't deny that this was the safest she'd felt in a while.

As they approached the train station, Rin walked a little faster. At the steps, she turned to face Sesshomaru and was once more struck by how insanely gorgeous he was. She blinked rapidly and looked off to the side while pushing a lock of hair behind her hair. Once the task was finished, Rin returned her gaze to his face and bowed.

"Thank you, but this is far enough," she said to the ground.

"You live in a train station," he asked. The change in his face was minute, but he'd managed to convey skepticism just fine.

Cheeks flaming, Rin stammered out a reply. "No, but you don't have to walk me home. You don't even know me," she said desperately.

"That's true, but I said that I would walk you home," Sesshomaru replied as he passed Rin and continued up the stairs, leaving Rin to follow after him.

As they walked through the station, Rin noticed Sesshomaru's eyes taking stock of everything. Clearly this was an informal inspection. Rin found herself hoping that everything was up to par. She had a feeling that his displeasure wasn't a pretty sight.

Resigned to having him escort her to the steps of her building, Rin boarded her train and settled into a seat. Sesshomaru stood next to her, looking at the posters and ads that littered the walls of the traincar.

As the train left the station, Rin felt an overwhelming wave of drowsiness hit her. Unbidden, her eyes began to close of the own volition. Just as she was about to drift off, Rin bolted up in her seat. What was wrong with her? It had been a while since she'd let her guard down like that. Rin shot a suspicious glance at Sesshomaru. Was he doing something to her? He was a demon after all and last time she'd checked they had special powers.

But Sesshomaru was just as preoccupied with the walls of the moving train as before. Or – Rin continued to reason - was it that she truly felt so at ease with him near that she felt safe falling asleep in his presence, and in public no less?

That was a disquieting thought. What's more, Rin didn't know what the answer was, but she stubbornly refused to give in to her exhaustion for the rest of their time on the train. Once they exited the station, it was only a five to ten minute walk to her building. They made it in silence.

At the door of her building, Rin once more turned to face Sesshomaru and bowed. "Thank you," she said. When she straightened, she saw that Sesshomaru's head was turned toward the park. It looked as though he was searching for something. Rin's feeling of ease disappeared at once.

"Is something wrong," she asked.

Sesshomaru turned his head toward her. "No."

"Well, thanks again," Rin said as she backed away slowly. Then without further ado, she swiped her card, opened the door and walked to the elevator. When she turned to look out the front doors before getting on the elevator, Sesshomaru was gone.

* * *

><p>When Rin opened the door to her apartment, she was greeted with a blaring television and the knowledge that Sango must be home. She tiredly pulled her jacket off and walked to the small dining area off the kitchen. Sango, who was sitting at the table, quickly muted the tv. Stretching her arms above her head, her roommate sat up in her seat.<p>

"Hey, how was your day," Sango asked on a yawn.

Rin shrugged and decided to stay quiet. She wouldn't know where start anyway.

"Well, I got us take-out," Sango said gesturing to a box on the table. Rin saw that a similar box was in front of Sango, its contents half-eaten.

"Thanks, I'm starving," Rin said with a smile. As Rin sat down and started eating, she tried to figure out a way of telling Sango about Kikyo's message. It had to be done in a way that Sango wouldn't think Rin knew more than she was letting on. Otherwise, she'd put Rin through the third degree, which Rin knew she wouldn't be able to handle. Sango could be downright menacing when she chose to be. Then there was the fact that Sango could almost always tell when she was lying.

Mind working furiously, Rin sat contemplating until she remembered a conversation that some of her co-workers had been having earlier that day. That was it!

"So, how's that serial killer case coming along," she asked.

Sango pushed her half-eaten box aside – a cue for Kilala to hop on the table and finish off the food inside it – and put her head on the table. She mumbled something unintelligible.

Rin continued. "Some people at work were talking about it. Some of them had some pretty . . . interesting ideas."

Sango turned her head towards Rin. "Like what," she asked disinterestedly.

"Like maybe the reason the killer is taking the fetuses is because he wants to hide something," Rin said.

Sango went very still. "Hide something?"

"Yeah. Some people thought it was like that Aichizawa case" – Rin said, referring to a case in which experimental drugs had been introduced to a group of people without their knowledge – "only much more sinister, obviously. And one guy even thinks that the women aren't actually carrying around babies, but huge piles of drugs. And the killings are being carried out by drug dealers after the drugs. But this same gut also believes that he's in contact with aliens, so no one took him very seriously."

By the time Rin finished Sango was sitting straight in her chair and staring at Rin with an intensity that was unnerving.

"Is everything okay, Sango? Do you think that they may be on to something?" Rin asked nervously. She knew that Sango wasn't allowed to go into specifics about an ongoing case, but she asked anyway.

Sango picked up a chopstick and started twirling it around her thumb. She shrugged, her gaze on the chopstick. "Who knows."

They sat in silence while Rin finished eating. Putting her chopsticks down, Rin sat back in her chair completely stuffed. "Thanks for dinner," she said.

Sango nodded vaguely.

Rin gathered all the trash that covered the table and threw it away. As she said good night to Sango she mentally patted herself on the back. Her little plan had worked.

* * *

><p>Thoughts were whizzing about in Sango's head with dizzying speed. Rin couldn't have any idea what she had just delivered unwittingly to her. It was the missing link. It answered one question while leading to many more.<p>

Sango wanted to make sure that she got everything down on paper, so she went into the kitchen and began writing on the notepad by the message machine. Soon the paper was filled with her thoughts: it outlined different scenarios, possible leads and what to do next.

Once everything was down, Sango took it all in. She let out a huge breath. Yep, there was no denying it. If she was right, then this case was much bigger and far more serious than any of them had originally thought.

Sango ripped the sheets of paper off the pad and stuffed them into her pocket. Kilala jumped on the counter and licked her hand. Sango absentmindedly scratched her behind the ears while staring off into space. She didn't know how long she stood there before snapping out of her trance.

She had better go to bed. Tomorrow was going to be a long day.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I know it's a little on the short side. Sorry about that. Sorry too about the cliffhanger, but this really was the best place to end the chapter. **

**The case that was mentioned was fictional to the best of my knowledge.**

**As always, thank you to my reviewers. Your support means a lot to me.**


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